In the aircraft cabin, there is usually the possibility to provide passengers with the opportunity to charge electronic devices at their seat through the electrical on-board network. For this purpose, there is a universal socket at the seat which provides a voltage of 110 V. This socket is configured in such a way that it is suitable for the operation of laptops having a power of approximately 50-70 W. Connecting said socket to the electrical on-board network of the aircraft requires wiring of the seat, whereby, when exchanging the seat or changing the seat configuration in the aircraft cabin, all of the cable connections have to be disconnected and then reconnected again.
Furthermore, in recent years laptops have begun to be increasingly replaced by tablet PCs, such as the iPad, or by smartphones. This category of high-powered but energy-saving devices is referred to as what are known as personal electronic devices (PEDs).
From the prior art according to DE 10 2005 002 545 A1, an energy buffer device in an aircraft is known, by means of which electronic devices, which are usually only in operation for a short amount of time, can be operated independently. However, this is disadvantageous in that the energy buffer device has to be connected via the electrical on-board network of the aircraft for charging its energy storage unit, whereby a cable connection is required for connecting to the electrical on-board network.
Furthermore, from the prior art according to DE 10 2005 046 729 A1, an energy supply system is known in which energy is supplied to an electrical consumer via a fuel cell. However, this is disadvantageous in that an energy supply system of this type can in turn be used as a central system for providing electrical energy for the electrical on-board network, which has to be connected to the seats in the aircraft cabin via cables in a known manner.